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Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Acorn Squash Soup

I don't remember if I have mentioned this before, but I have been
attending some of the free Cooking Technique Sessions conducted by the Williams
Sonoma stores. These sessions are held on Sunday mornings and are really interesting.
The first one I attended was focused on fall squashes. The lady doing the demo
had brought 6 different varieties of squashes and she cooked a few of them for
us. One of the squashes she cooked was the acorn squash. She cut it in half,
spread some butter and brown sugar on the inside, placed it upside down on a
cookie sheet and baked it for about 30 minutes. What came out was a nicely
caramelized, gorgeous looking thing, which was very yummy too.

The other squashes (butternut, kabocha, sugar pie, etc.,
were roasted with some olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs. They tasted awesome
too.

Coming to the soup, I roasted the acorn squash (with peel)
in the oven, scooped out the flesh and then made the soup. This can be done
with any other squash that is available.

Soup

Ingredients

Chopped onions – ¾ cup

Mashed squash – ¾ cup

Water – 2 cups + more

Milk/cream – 2-3 tbsps

Finely chopped garlic – 1-2 cloves

Chili powder to taste

Turmeric – ¼ tsp

Thyme (or any herb of choice) – 1 tbsp

Olive oil/Cooking oil – 2-3 tbsps + more for brushing on the
squash

Method

Preheat oven to 350O F. Wash and cut the squash, remove the seeds and pulp, brush
with a little oil, sprinkle sat and chili powder and place upside down on a cookie sheet. Roast for 20-25
minutes. Let the squash cool a bit before you handle it. Using a spoon, scoop
out the cooked flesh and mash well.

In a saucepan, sauté onion in 2-3 tbsps of oil. Once they
turn slightly translucent, add the garlic and sauté for couple of minutes. Add
the mashed squash, salt, chili, turmeric and herbs. Mix well. Add the 2 cups of
water and let it simmer. Add more water if you want. Also, you can blend this
mixture if you prefersmoother soup. I
personally liked the slightly coarse texture.

Add the milk/cream just before serving.

Croutons

Ingredients

Butter – 1 tbsp

Olive oil – 1 tbsp

Bread – 2 slices

Mint/Rosemary/or any herb of choice – 1 tbsp

Method

I used regular whole wheat bread, but you could use any
bread like a baguette, sour dough etc. In a pan, heat oil and butter on medium
heat. Add the herbs and heat it for a minute. Add the chopped bread and toss to
coat. Reduce the heat, and let it get crunchy (about 10-15 minutes). Keep tossing
to ensure even crunchiness. Add a few
croutons to your soup and enjoy. Bon Appétit.

Note: For an added crunch you can also add toasted pumpkin/squash seeds. To make those, wash dry the seeds. On a cookie sheet toss the seeds with some olive oil, salt, and chili powder. Roast in the oven at 350OF until they are crunchy (about 30-40 minutes). These make a nice afternoon snack.

7 comments:

This is the dish to impress your guests:-) I've tried it in the past and it came out so well.The only variation in my recipe is i've garnished it with some roasted sweetcorn in a tiny bit if olive oil.This truly is divine! Thanks for sharing this, Aparna.

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